It is known to use flight bars or slat bars connected to roller chains pulled by a sprocket to convey asphaltic material in pavers. Conventional flight bar and slat bar assemblies, however, suffer from one or more disadvantages. For example, conventional flight bar and slat bar assemblies pull back only a limited amount of asphaltic material. Conventional flight bar and slat bar assemblies also fail to sufficiently reduce or eliminate carry-around asphaltic material with each flight or slat. As a result, conventional flight bar and slat bar assemblies produce asphaltic material build-up under the paver where working components are located. The asphaltic material build-up causes premature failure of the mechanical, hydraulic and track components of the paver. Conventional flight bar and slat bar assemblies also cause asphaltic material to be segregated because the carry-around asphaltic material falls in front of the working head of the asphaltic material. In addition, conventional flight bar and slat bar assemblies are difficult to clean and must be operated at undesirably fast speeds. As a result, conventional flight bar and slat bar assemblies result in undesirable wear on their components and undesirable consumption of costly fuel.
It would be desirable, therefore, if an apparatus and method for a conveyor system adapted for use on an asphalt paver could be provided that would not pull back only a limited amount of asphaltic material. It would also be desirable if such an apparatus and method for a conveyor system adapted for use on an asphalt paver could be provided that would sufficiently reduce or eliminate carry-around asphaltic material. It would be further desirable if such an apparatus and method for a conveyor system adapted for use on an asphalt paver could be provided that would sufficiently reduce or eliminate asphaltic material build-up under the paver where the working components are located. It would be still further desirable if such an apparatus and method for a conveyor system adapted for use on an asphalt paver could be provided that would sufficiently reduce or eliminate the premature failure of the mechanical, hydraulic and track components of the paver. In addition, it would be desirable if such an apparatus and method for a conveyor system adapted for use on an asphalt paver could be provided that would sufficiently reduce or eliminate the segregation of asphaltic material. It would also be desirable if such an apparatus and method for a conveyor system adapted for use on an asphalt paver could be provided that would be easy to clean and could be operated at reduced speeds. It would be further desirable if such an apparatus and method for a conveyor system adapted for use on an asphalt paver could be provided that would sufficiently reduce or eliminate wear on its components and sufficiently reduce the consumption of costly fuel.